Embodying the Hebrew Letters
This course is currently on pause.
The Hebrew letters are a powerful portal to the divine. They have associations with astrology, tarot, the elements, archetypes, parts of the body, angels and many other esoteric themes. The ancient mystical text, Sefer Yetzirah, teaches the world was created through the Hebrew letters. We will explore these teachings through a creative and meditative practice. In each class I will share my research, offer a teaching and a guided meditation and/or writing exercise where you will connect with a letter. We will break off into pair sharing, have a group conversation and you will have an opportunity to integrate the mystical qualities of the letter into your own life through creating art. For some, this could even mean making an oracle deck of your own. Through cultivating this bi monthly practice, you will experience and embody the Hebrew letters in mind, body and spirit.
I will be teaching a creative process I learned from my teachers Marilyn Frasca and Lynda Barry. The new moon class will offer specific teachings about the Hebrew month in addition to teachings about the letter associated with the month. The full moon class will focus on a different letter.
I am in the process of creating an oracle deck and book using the Hebrew letters. The deck explores Jewish folk magic and healing with animals, plants and other mystical practices. In many ways by participating in this class you are joining in my journey as collaborators and midwives of this project.
I will offer art practices I have been using for decades which help to unleash the well of your creativity. The environment will be lovingly free of judgement. Each creator will have the choice and power to share their work or not. I believe everyone is an artist and it is oppressive messages from our society that can convince us otherwise. If you choose to participate in the journey of these monthly classes, your voice and interpretation will inevitably be a part of my own creative process. With permission, I may translate an insight you have into a written or visual component of the deck.
Here’s what participants have to say:
“The Embodying the Hebrew Letters course has brought clarity to my artistic practice and spiritual life. Doing this amongst a community of other learners I feel comfortable with, one letter at a time, has brought me great joy. Each letter is a door to personal and collective meaning making.
While building a relationship with each letter, I have also learned to spell short words and recognize sounds of the letters of the alef bet. As someone with no other experience with Hebrew language instruction, it’s been a really interesting way to connect to Jewish texts and ritual.”
“Through Rebekah’s teachings, I have connected with the letters of my ancestors in a deep and intimate way. The letters themselves have become profound teachers, guides, friends and healers to me. We are now on a life-long journey together; building a relationship of revelation and reclamation.
Rebekah is a gifted teacher, skilled in creating a communal and inclusive learning space. I’ve met some really rad people I’ve connected with outside of class, too.
I look forward to many more courses with Rebekah, and highly recommend studying with them.”
“Growing up half-Filipino in American-Jewish community in Chicago, I felt a sense of being othered or different from my mainly white, Ashkenazi classmates at our local Jewish day school. I eventually shifted away from Jewish life and thinking because the spaces never really spoke to me, I found Zionism to be increasingly problematic, and I felt like the indoctrination I experienced as a young person was far from how I felt as a spiritual being. I met Rebekah through our mutual friend and teacher, and I immediately knew that their relationship to Judaism aligned with my values and thinking. Their land-based and social-justice focused teachings truly resonated with the relationship that I was cultivating with my own Philippine ancestral practices. I finally feel like I have a teacher who centers my voice, my experience as a Jew of Color, and who uplifts and celebrates a truly inclusive, diverse Jewish community. Todah Rabah, Rebekah for your commitment to justice, our ancestors, and the land itself in your creative educational and spiritual spaces!!”
there is Jewish magic Associated with Dandelion, pomegranate, Fennel and the copper bowl.
The first class
The first class:
The first class will provide a foundation for the rest of the classes. I will give an overview of Jewish magic and mysticism as I understand it, describe my intuitive and research process and welcome you into the world of Earth based, queer, feminist Judaism. I will also introduce the creative writing process we will be using and we will be doing some essential activities that will guide us in the Hebrew letters study.
The creative framework I use is based in intuition and the belief that all is animate and can communicate with us directly. Regardless of experience or self esteem, anyone can create beauty. Creating through art is just one way of connecting to the divine. I believe we make creation through what we think, feel, say, make and how we act.
In this first class, you will be able to set goals and commitments for yourself. I will guide students through an abundance and clearing exercise. No matter when you join this community, the first class is a necessary part of understanding the framework we are using. If you miss the first live class, it will be recorded and available for you to watch or listen to anytime.
Dates of classes:
A full list of dates lives in the post on Patreon labeled as such. We meet once a month, the first Wednesday of the month. I created a schedule so none of the dates conflict with Shabbat or the main Jewish holidays (though some fall on Rosh Chodesh, the new moon holiday).
All classes meet on Wednesday 4-6pm PST:
You will be sent a reminder email each day before class with a Zoom link and the letter we will be exploring.
All classes will be recorded and available to participants if you miss a class.
Images in header are from the in-process deck, inspired by medieval Hebrew manuscript paintings.
My teaching philosophy and practice
I believe everyone is creative and spiritual. It takes different forms in different people but we all have the ability to access and nurture our own creative spark. I believe everyone learns in different ways. As someone with multiple learning disabilities I have been on a long journey to find ways of learning and organizing my life. I believe freedom of expression comes from acknowledging and celebrating our life stories and dreams. We thrive when we can integrate this with liberation work for all beings.
I have a background in experiential education, have taught public school (art and other subjects), have a graduate degree in education, spent years teaching public workshops on spiritual and creative themes, been a homeschool teacher, a nursery school teacher, created online classes and a camp counselor. What I find most exciting is teaching techniques that guide people to uncover their own knowledge and creative depth. Some of the ways I do this is through guided meditation, centering practice, body awareness techniques and journaling to access subconscious depth. These practices are informed by a lifetime of experience. My personal experience with working with a Generative Somatics and Feldenkrais practitioner, trainings with Strozzi Institute and the Kohenet Institute (including ordination), and schooling with Marilyn Frasca who learned directly from Ira Progoff have been some of my most impactful formal learnings. I also value social justice work as a foundation for personal transformation.
The majority of classes are live but occasionally a written packet will go out with guided exercises and learnings or I may need to reschedule. I am an artist who is sick and disabled and I need to plan in sick days and time off for myself throughout the year.
All classes will be recorded and available to participants if you miss a class.
Please note:
Classes are only available as recordings if you are signed up for Patreon. If you miss a class during your subscription (while you are paying for Patreon), you will be sent a recording of the class upon request.
Images in the header are from the in-process deck, inspired by medieval Hebrew manuscript paintings.
I am committed to making this work accessible, especially for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and people with disabilities. If you would like to join in the journey, are committed to attending and participating in class and don’t have the financial means, please contact me directly. We can set something up for a low payment.
The shofar, mouth, mirror and mandrake all have Jewish mystical associations.
This course is for you if
You are passionate about developing your creative voice.
You are new to learning about Jewish folk magic and mysticism / curious about Judaism in general.
You want to learn new techniques for growing your creative practice.
You want to integrate your intellectual understanding of Judaism with an embodied experience of Jewish magic.
You are deeply immersed in Jewish learning.
You have felt stuck creatively and are looking for inspiration.
You are curious about how the Hebrew letters can support your meditation practice.
You are interested in creating your own oracle deck or body of art work.
You want to learn basics about earth centered, feminist, mystical Judasim.
You are a beginner and have no experience with Hebrew.
You are an advanced Hebrew speaker.
You think of yourself as an artist.
You do not identify as an artist.
You want to release your inner critic.
You want to join a community of fellow creatives!
What’s included
One 2 hour LIVE class on the new moon/Rosh Chodesh (dates vary slightly).
Occasional resource materials about Jewish plants, animals, the Hebrew letters and other Jewish mystical information.
Embodied practices you can use in all areas of your life.
Support for following through on creative projects.
Support for embracing the creative spark inside you.
What you will get from participating in the class
A supportive community of fellow humans interested in mysticism and creative expression.
An opportunity to connect with your subconscious and receive messages from the divine.
The ability to tap into your higher self or some call, inner guidance.
An intimate, personal connection to the Hebrew letters.
This class is not for you if
You aren’t willing to put aside your ideas of what Judaism is and isn’t.
You are committed to keeping the door shut to your creativity.
You don’t want to take a risk to explore your identity or spiritual life.
You aren’t open to new ideas of how to investigate your internal creative self.
You don’t have three hours a month to put aside to attend class.
Please email : Rebekah@RebekahErevStudio.com with any questions
